Tubular article with pocket



Nov.3, 1964 W, SHEA TUBULAR ARTICLE WITH POCKET Filed Jan. 4, 1960 E T 3 t, m m. m F a a@ M A J/ Mid Prf\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\f\\ from M United States Patent O 3,154,873 TUBULAR ARTECLE WETH PCKET Warren Shea, Jersey City, NJ., assigner to Radiant Pen Corp., Kenilworth, NJ. Filed Jan. 4, 1960, Ser. No. 147 1 Claim. (Cl. l0-334) My invention relates .to a tubular article provided with a transparent Wall and a protected inner surface containing printed or colored material. The article may be in the form of a Writing device such as a pen.

Articles of this character are desirable for displaying advertising or ornamentation which may be inserted into the wall of the article where it will be permanently protected. Printing on the outside of the article is subject to constant wear which eventually causes illegibility of the printing.

The protected inner area is usually in the form of a pocket positioned between two members. In one type, the outer member is split to allow insertion between two shoulders forming the pocket on the inner member. This permitted dust to enter the pocket. The various methods of assembly employed were cumbersome and expensive. Sometimes, in a pen, the assembly fell apart, because the cap Was removed to replace the ink cartridge.

When the pocket is formed by grooving out a cylindrical area, the manufacturing costs are high. Moreover, a grooved part is diicult to mold.

Accordingly, an important object of the invention is to provide such a tubular article, useful as a pen or the like, which readily lends itself to mass production with molded plastic material.

Other objects are to provide a pocket between casing walls which can be easily assembled; which does not require rotation or threading of the parts; which can extend for the entire length of the lbarrel of a pen; and which may be formed without external seams.

I accomplished these and other objects and obtain my new results as will be apparent from the device described in the following specification, particularly pointed out in the claim, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. l is a longitudinal partly sectioned ball pointed pen illustrating the invention,

FIG. 2 is an outside view of the same, and

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal fragmentary view of a modification.

The invention may comprise a transparent outer barrel provided with a shoulder on the inner surface of the same, and an inner sleeve provided with a shoulder on the outer surface thereof. The parts are assembled by wedging the sleeve entirely inside the barrel, forming a casing thus forming the inner pocket automatically therebetween.

More specifically the pen illustrated comprises an internally threaded cap lil, an externally threaded barrel 12, a 'ball pointed cartridge 14, and a spring 1o, cooperating with a push button mechanism 18 for protracting and retracting the cartridge. While a pen is illustrated, the invention can be attached to or form a part of any device having a tubular construction.

Within the barrel 12, I have provided an inner sleeve member 20 which is recessed at shoulder 22.

The inner surface 24 of the barrel, and the shouldered 3,l54 ,873 Patented Nov. 3, 1964 surface 26 of the sleeve are substantially cylindrical throughout their length, except for the inwardly formed taper at the ends thereof, which starts at point 28 of the ybarrel and point 30 of the sleeve to form a tight iitting tapered surface 32. A shoulder 34 on the barrel is formed, to act as a stop for positioning the two parts one inside the other. The opening 36 for the cartridge in the barrel, is an extension of opening 38 of the inner Sleeve, which its additionally provided on the inside with a shouldered portion 40 for seating the spring 16. Thus the spring is compressed between shoulder 4t?, and a projection 4:2 on the cartridge, to permit retraction in a known manner, when the push button mechanism is released.

At the other end of the pen, I prefer to have the inner sleeve 2t), form a slide tit along surface 44 with the inner surface 24 of the barrel.

A sheet 46 is wrapped around the surface 26 of the inner sleeve, which is thereafter tightly wedged into the barrel. The surfaces 24 and 26 together with shoulder 212 and the tapered surface between points 28 and Sil, automatically forms the sealed pocket 4S when the sleeve is fully seated in the fbarrel. The sheet may be decorated and printed in any desired fashion, and will be visible through vthe Ibarrel 12 which should be made of transparent material. The decoration or printing may be directly applied to surface 26.

As is apparent from the drawing, both the barrel and the inner sleeve may each be made in a simple mold, and thus easily mass produced.

The wall of the barrel between points 28 and 30, instead of being an extension of the tapered surface 32, may be formed as a right angle shoulder 59, see FIG. 3, where the parts are similarly numbered with an a added.

The constructions thus described have the following advantages.

(l) The parts may be easily molded.

(2) The parts are easily fitted together.

(3) The sleeve forming part of the compartment is on the entire inside of the barrelwhere it is protected.

(4) The construction is extremely sturdy.

(5) The barrel and sleeve cannot fall apart when the cap is removed.

(6) No split sleeves are employed which would allow dust to enter.

(7) A minimum number of parts are employed.

(8) No seams are externally required to form the inner pocket.

I have thus described my invention, but I desire it understood that it i-s not confined to the particular forms or uses shown and described, the same being merely illustrative, and that the invention may be carried out in other ways without departing from the spirit of my invention, and therefore I claim broadly the right to employ all equivalent instrumentalities coming within the scope of the appended claim, and by means of which objects of my invention are obtained and new results accomplished as it is obvious that the particular embodiments herein shown and described are only some of the many that can be employed to obtain these objects and accomplish these rmults.

I claim:

A two piece display barrel for a pen or the like, comprising a hollow transparent outer casing, and an inner 3 member having a diameter and length permitting insertion Within the holow outercasing, said outer casing provided with an inner `surface having an inwardly extending taper terminating in a stop engaging the inner member, said inner member provided with an outer sup face having an outwardy extending shoude engaging the inner surface of the outer casing; said step and said shoulder creating a hollow pocket between `the casing, member, shoulder, taper, and stop, for containing dising.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNTED STATES PATENTS DOlier Sept. 9, 1924 Ponath Jan. 18, 1944 Wilson Apr. 18, 1944 Custin Oct. 2, 1956 Liquori Jan. 28, 1958 Dean Apr. 4, 1961 

